LIPSTICK AND METHOD TO DO THE SAME
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a lipstick container, hereinafter referred to as a "lipstick", of the ejector / repeller variety. Specifically, the invention relates to a lipstick mechanism. This is also related to an efficient method to elaborate the mechanism.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Lipsticks, along with their operating mechanisms, have evolved from simple containers to enclose and expose the product (ointment) in complex and sophisticated systems. The industry considers as supreme the following criteria: 1. Cost. On top of all the others, in the highly competitive cosmetic industry, the container manufacturer is under immense pressure to provide a product at the lowest possible cost. 2. Dimension Offer the smallest possible external diameter without compromising the size of the ointment in order to achieve a slim appearance. 3. Sealing. Being able to be sealed to contain the highly volatile ointment formulations that are currently in vogue. 4. Operation When the user rotates to eject the product, it should feel elegantly smooth. 5. Cup control. Hold the ointment in an erect manner with a
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minimum of lateral play in such a way that it does not make contact with the surrounding surfaces of the mechanism. 6. Assembly. Allow simple assembly of components that can be achieved in combination with the operation of molding parts. 7. Disassembly. Allow easy disassembly and categorization of the parts to comply with ever-increasing recycling legislation. The commercial mechanisms currently available have tried to meet the criteria of sealability, operation and cup control. There is none that refers to the criteria of cost, dimension, assembly and disassembly. A major attempt to improve the dimension problem is disclosed in the old patents
Nos. 2,395,710 and 2,419,526 from J. W. Anderson of Newtown, Connecticut in 1946 and 1947 respectively. Although deserving, these patents do not address the other problems, especially the cost. Many patented designs have not been commercially discontinued for failure to measure up to one or more of these criteria.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention can be expressed as a lipstick mechanism comprising a cam sleeve having a spiral slide and an ointment carrier assembly including a cup reciprocally disposed within the cam sleeve and having external fins that mount inside. of the sliding guide, a mechanism base rotatably connected to the end of the cam sleeve, and a column of variable lenconnecting the base and the cup for joint rotation. In the preferred version the column comprises a plurality of non-circular cross-section telescoped sections, the sections having external flanges to prevent movement of the respective sections against lateral collapse. Other features are the sealing means between the base and the cam sleeve and between the cap and the cam sleeve; pointed fins on the cup rolling on the V-shaped slideways on the cam sleeve and the sliding guides formed with shallow areas to provide secondary running structures. These characteristics are all made possible and optimized by the main aspect of the invention as described in the previous paragraph below. The invention can also be expressed as a method in which the telescopic sections are first molded as a preform with the cup and the mechanism base as a simple part maintained in axial relation by separate frangible radial connectors. The manufacture includes the drastic step in which the preform is axially collapsed in the telescopic sections held together, by means of hook and groove arrangements. The hooks are themselves as they are rolling down on the upper ends of adjacent adjoining units respectively, leaving the slidable hooks respectively in the grooves in the internal walls of the telescopic sections.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The objects and additional features of the invention are clear to those skilled in the art from a review of the following description and the accompanying drawings, all of which have a non-limiting form of the invention. In the drawings:
Figure 1 is a sectional view taken on line 1-1 of Figure 3 of a lipstick incorporating the invention with the ointment shown in phantom line and the cup for the retracted ointment; Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 with the lid removed and with the ointment cup fully extended; Figure 3 is an enlarged bottom plan view of the drive mechanism with the cover and base cup removed; Figure 4 is an enlarged sectional view of the indicated portion of Figure 2; Figure 5 is a very enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken on line 5-5 of Figure 1; Figure 6 is a developmental view of the interior of a longitudinally divided portion of the cam and placed flat to show the nature of the spiral slide guides; Figure 7 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 7-7 of Figure 2; Figure 8 is an enlarged sectional view of the indicated portion of Figure 2; Figure 9 is a fragmentary sectional view showing a modified form of the sealing insert in the lid; Figure 10 is a sectional view of the preform for ointment, base, and telescopic drive sections prior to axial collapse. The dotted lines indicate schematically the wall of a cavity into which the parts collapse; Figure 11 is a very enlarged view of the indicated portion of Figure 10;
-.------- j-fc - * - -aJ-y l - * ^ -----? j- Figure 12 is a reduced fragmentary sectional view taken on line 12-12 of the Figure 11, showing one of the frangible connectors; and Figure 13 is a view similar to Figure 4 reproduced by side-by-side comparison with Figure 10 of the preform and showing the relationship of sections 5 after collapsing.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED MODALITY
A lipstick incorporating the invention is shown in the form
10 simplified in Figure 1 and is generally designated 10. The "fashionable parts" comprise a fashionable base in the form of a cup 12 and a cover in the shape of an inverted cup 14. The mouth of the base 12 is formed with a step or internal shoulder 16 and the inside of the mouth of the lid is formed with an external step or shoulder 18 as shown and the steps or projections are inserted into one another together in a well-fitting manner.
15 ready to close. Within the fashionable parts the mechanism is usually designated 20. This comprises a mechanism base 22 inserted into the fashion base 12 and sealed thereto, and in this way the base 12 and the base 22 rotate together. The mechanism base 22 is formed with an internally stepped mouth 24 which has a
20 Circulating sealant ridge facing outwardly 26. As shown in Figure 3, the base 22 below the circular mouth 24 and the rib 26 is hexagonal in shape and has a hexagonal central opening 27. A cam sleeve 28 is formed around the interior of its lower end with a reduced area 30 (Figure 8) and a recess 32 that press fit on the
25 rib 26 and is rotatable therein. The interior of the sleeve 28 is formed with a plurality of spiral slide guides 34 (Figure 1), each of which is
V-shaped (Figure 6), the side walls of the sliding guides converging towards a point. Pressed to the outside of the cam sleeve 28 is the metal body 36 which has a bore hole in its upper end 38 which embraces the internally stepped mouth of the cam sleeve (Figure 1). An ointment cup 42 having a central opening 43 is rotatably but tightly disposed within the cam sleeve. At its lower end the cup is formed with external pointed fins 44 which engage in the sliding guides 34. Connecting the base 22 and the cup 42 and ensuring their joint rotation, there is a column 46 of variable length. In the preferred form the column comprises a plurality of telescopic sections including the base 22 itself, a lower telescopic section 48, a telescopic intermediate unit 50 and a telescopic upper section 52. The upper telescopic section 52 is a rod on the unitarily formed cup. with the ointment cup 42. Each of the telescopic sections has a generally non-circular exterior and a non-circular interior of similar configuration.
Specifically, in the preferred version, the openings and the exteriors are hexagonal and are dimensioned such that each section fits snugly but slidably in the section below. The lower telescopic section 48 and the telescopic middle section 50 each have at their upper ends stabilizing circular tabs 54 and 56, respectively. These flanges extend outwardly almost to the inner diameter of the cam sleeve 28 and may sometimes engage with the cam sleeve 28 to ensure that there is no lateral movement of the respective sections. Figures 3, 4 and 5 disclose that inside the wall on the three alternating sides, the mechanism base 22 is formed with a longitudinal shallow groove 58. A similar shallow groove 60 is formed on the corresponding surfaces of the lower telescopic section 48 and the similar groove 62 is formed on the telescopic middle section 50. As shown in Figure 13, the shallow grooves 62 in the telescopic mid section 50 end near its upper end at a blind end 63. This is typical of the slot 60 in the lower section 5 telescopic 48 and of the slots 58 in the base of the mechanism 22 as well. The slots in this manner each have a blind top end; that is, the slots end up proximally of the upper ends of the respective sections. Rolling into the slots within the elevation and depression of the cup 42 are the integral hooks (Figure 4) at the lower end of the section
10 adjacent anterior. For example, the lower telescopic section 48 has a hook 64 (Figure 5) which rolls within the slot 58 in the base 22 until it abuts the upper end (not shown) of the slot 58 in the base. The intermediate telescopic section is formed with an integral hook 68 that rolls inside the slot 60 until it is stopped by the upper end (not shown) of the slot in the section
15 telescopic bottom and the hook 72 (Figure 4) in the upper telescopic section 52 rolls into the shallow groove 62 in the intermediate telescopic section until it is stopped by the upper end 63. Thus, according to the ointment cup 42 elevates while the base 22 is rotated relative to the cam sleeve 28, the telescopic sections remain connected, and each pulls up the lower section
20 as the hooks reach the respective upper ends of the shallow grooves in the adjacent lower section. Upon retraction, the lower wall of the cup 42 and flanges 56 and 54 serve to lower the immediate lower section before the hooks move down past the adjacent lower section. By virtue of the structure described, the rotation of the fashionable base 12 with
25 relation to the body 36 / cam sleeve 28, causes the fins 44 that roll in the respective slide guides to move the cup upwards. Column 46,
_. ---- _-_ !. ..fl ensuring the joint rotation of the cup 42 and the base of the mechanism 22, is able to adapt to the increasing distance between the cup and the base. Clearly, this can be achieved by other configurations of the telescopic parts. These can be any non-circular cross section, such as triangular, octagonal, or even circular 5 having wedges and molded cunners. However, the hexagonal modality shown is preferred. Thereby, the usual internal body which comprises an additional thickness that requires a wider overall diameter of the lipstick is removed from the lipstick structure. 10 Because of the absence of the inner body, lipstick is much easier to seal. As shown in Figure 1, the upper end seal of the lipstick can be achieved by a more or less conventional "stovepipe" 80 having a downwardly tapered circular wall 82. As is conventional, the stovepipe can be secured to the top wall of the lid by cement or similar. The
The flexible nature of the tapered wall 82 allows it to wedge sealingly against and around the inside of the mouth of the cam sleeve, sealing the inside of the sleeve at the upper end. A second form of upper seal (Figure 9) may be of the sleeve seal 80 'in the form of an inverted cup which, again, is glued to the cap against the top wall thereof. The internal surface of the wall
20 peripheral of the sleeve seal can couple the outer side of the body sealingly. At the lower end of the cam sleeve the rotating sleeve is sealingly connected to the base which is, of course, fixedly secured within the fashionable base 12. The sealing connection is made by the rib
25 26 which mounts within the recess 32 within the lower end of the cam sleeve 28. As shown, the structure of the base on either side 86, 88 of the rib 26
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it is tapered in an upward direction (Figure 8) in such a way that the very far edge of the cam sleeve 28 is in sealed contact with the side 86 of the base in a sealing line contact 90 still allowing rotation of the sleeve cam on the base. This contact not only serves as a seal but also provides stable friction to give the lipstick a "silky" feel as the parts are rotated. It also offers the increased resistance of the recoil, preventing the ointment from retracting when the user applies pressure to it during use. A further advantage of the absence of the usual internal body is that the cup is fitted inside the cam sleeve without intervening the unstable inner body, the fins; 44 in the ointment cup can be directed and coupled directly to the V-shaped slots 34 of the respective slide guides. This increases the resistance to recoil. Because the outer side of the cup can be made virtually the same diameter as the cam sleeve, there is little instability of the cup within the container, reducing the likelihood of lateral damage for the ointment to stick. The stability is improved by having a rod 52 of the cup received within the telescopic section 50 giving a greater proportion of length to the laterally supported diameter of the cup. The pointed fins on the cup and the V-shaped groove in the cam slide guides furthermore give greater precision of motion control with less stability and play. In addition, as shown in Figure 6, the slide guides 34 can be provided with shallow regions or barriers 92 which are secondary taxi stops for refilling. In the filling position shown in Figure 2, the fins 44 of the cup have been driven past the shallow regions 92 of the slide guides 34. This is the only occasion probably during the life of the lipstick that the ointment cup will be taken to this level. In normal use the user will perceive
-___-_ --- _ Secondary taxiing obstruction 92 and you will perceive that you have reached the top of the trip. This normal upper position is where the upper part of the cup 42 is flush with the upper part of the cam 28. Figures 10, 11 and 12 relate to the preform 100 for the mechanism including the telescopic sections. Figure 10 is a vertical section through a preform adapted to produce part of the lipstick mechanism described above. The preform is in the form of the base 22 and the ointment cup 42: which are joined together and unitarily molded with the intermediate column 46 of the sections capable of telescoping collapsible. Even though the preform is a simple molded article, the reference numbers that are the numbers in the finished product as shown in Figure 2, have been used for simplicity of identification. The close view of Figure 11 shows, for example, that the upper telescopic section which extends downwardly from the cup 42, is formed with the hook 72 above the upper part of the telescopic intermediate section 50 and connected thereto by a plurality of connectors or bridges 102. Figure 12, which is a dog leg section through line 12-12, shows the plastic continuum that includes the frangible connector 102. Just above the connector there is the hook 72 which, as shown , extends outwardly further than the inner diameter of the telescopic intermediate section 50 and is adapted to roll within the slot 62 of the telescopic intermediate section in the final assembly. The frangible connector 102, as shown in Figures 11 and 12, is one of a plurality spaced around the periphery of the lower end of the upper telescopic section 52. Preferably, there are three of these frangible connectors spaced at 120 ° apart and , therefore, on the alternating walls of the telescopic intermediate section 50 hexagonal unitary. The structure shown in Figures 11 and 12 is also replica in the contiguous areas of the intermediate and lower telescopic sections 50, 48 and the lower telescopic section and the base 48, 22. To reduce the friction and to adjust the distortion of the molding in the final product, it should be noted that the outer surface of the walls of the telescopic sections can be formed with a relief 106 (Figure 11). To form the mechanism within the collapsed telescopic assembly shown in Figure 1, and including the mechanism base 22, the ointment cup 42 and the telescopic sections therebetween, it is merely necessary to confine the preform of Figure 10 laterally as within a cylindrical space (dotted lines) and apply opposite axial forces as designated by the arrows in Figure 10. This causes(Figure 11) that the frangible connectors 102 between each of the two telescopic sections break. Immediately afterwards, the hook 72, which has a tapered inner base 108, engages the upper surface of the adjacent lower section 50 and rolls through the upper end of the adjacent lower section. Having passed the upper end and the adjacent lower section, the hook 72 fits under pressure in the groove 62 and subsequently connects the two sections 50, 52 in the telescopic manner with the blind upper end 110 of the groove 62, thereby avoiding that the Separate sections. The final ratio is as shown in Figure 13. This relationship is replicated between each of two adjacent telescopic sections after the axial collapse of the preform. The flanges 56 and 54 give lateral support to the column 46 during collapsing. After that, it is only necessary to fix the cam sleeve to the upper end of the mechanism base 22. With the body installed on the cam sleeve and the ointment cup extending to the position shown in Figure 2, the pre-molded ointment can be installed in the cup 42 or the mechanism can be inverted over the appropriate mold and the ointment liquid can be emptied through the openings in the sections
The hexagonal telescopes 48, 50, 52 and the opening 43 towards the cup 42 and mold. Fashion base 12 and fashion cover 14, can be installed as described. In this way there is presented a novel lipstick that has the novel production method. The invention satisfies all the criteria referred to in the background section of this disclosure. Variations in the invention are possible. Therefore, although the invention has been shown in only one embodiment, it is not thus limited but is of a scope defined by the language of the following claims which may be extended by an extension of the right to exclude others from develop, use or sell the invention as is appropriate under the doctrine of equivalents.